In Chicago, Shutdown's Impact Has Been Minimal

City, State Funds Help

The Big Concerns Are Unpaid Workers And Lack Of Passports

Except for those needing passports and a few hundred angry, unpaid federal workers, the impact of the loss of some government services in the Chicago area has been relatively minimal.

With reports Thursday night of a possible Republican plan to end the three-week federal government shutdown, Chicagoans had reason to hope they would escape the fallout from the budget crisis that has hit other cities.

As a result of additional funds from the city and state, in some instances, food and transportation services have remained available for the elderly, and the first of nearly 2,000 federal workers who filed for unemployment benefits should be receiving money this week.

More than 280,000 "non-essential" federal workers have been furloughed since Dec. 16. Nearly 500,000 "emergency" employees have been working without pay.

That Chicago doesn't appear to be in as bad shape as other cities didn't stop 250 employees of the Hines Veterans Administration Hospital in Hines from protesting the furlough during their lunch hour Thursday.

Ill veterans were not affected by the furlough because, although money for drugs and supplies to the hospital ran out Wednesday, the pharmaceutical companies continue to supply the hospital on the understanding that they will be paid when the budget crisis is over.

But the crisis was taking its toll on hospital employees, many of whom can't even afford gas money to get to work, protesters said. About 3,000 Hines employees are working, while 400 have been furloughed.

"The real problem is the employees cannot meet their bills and other obligations," said Brian Boettcher, chief of human resources at Hines, located near west suburban Maywood. "They've gone three weeks and only gotten one half of a paycheck."

Several states have announced that they have run out of federal unemployment benefits, although Illinois is continuing to pay those who qualify.

As of Wednesday, 1,940 federal workers had filed unemployment insurance claims, said Shari Kertez, spokeswoman for the Illinois Department of Employment Security. Eligible federal workers could begin receiving benefits this week, but there is one catch: Government employees who are working but aren't being paid will not qualify for unemployment benefits.

Per week, eligible single workers will receive $251, those with a dependent spouse will receive $296 and those with children $332. Kertez said those benefits come from money set aside for federal workers and not from a state trust fund.

And although President Clinton announced that the Meals on Wheels program that provides food for homebound elderly people would run out of money this week, Chicago spokeswoman Tanya Mitchell said the local program doesn't expect any cuts. Only the older-workers program is expected to be cut, she said.

"We're not strictly funded by the federal government, so the city (Meals on Wheels) program is in pretty good shape," she said.

While those employees who have come to work without pay will be paid once the budget battle is over, there is a question whether those who have been furloughed will be paid for the time they spent at home. In previous shutdowns, government employees have always been paid, but no shutdown has ever lasted this long.

Many federal employees also are angry that the public perceives them as being paid for no work.

"This is typical of Congress where they manage to put the federal employee between a rock and a hard place and paint a picture to the general public that federal employees expect a free ride," said Bob Estep, president of the National Federation of Federal Employees.

Many affected locally by the federal shutdown are people in need of passports for overseas trips. A sign in the local passport office states: "The Chicago Passport Office has been closed and will remain closed during the current funding hiatus."

And the shutdown has affected others. For example, the closing of the local Peace Corps office has delayed Tundalisa Muldrow's long-awaited trip to the Ivory Coast in Africa as a Peace Corps volunteer.

"I was frustrated almost to the point of tears," she said. "I've been preparing for this for almost a year, and now it's like someone else basically has control of my life."